Domestic helpers: Essential, but paid poorly<\/p>\n
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Ani, 29, a stand guide at a shopping center in Central Jakarta
\nand her husband Irfan, 31, an employee at a private bank in South
\nJakarta, can't imagine living without their maid even for a day.<\/p>\n
\"Both of us have to leave early in the morning and come home
\naround eight in the evening. We leave all the household chores to
\nour maid,\" Ani told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Besides doing the laundry and cooking, their domestic helper,
\naccording to Ani, still takes care of their two children. For all
\nthe work, Ani said, she pays her Rp 300,000 per month.<\/p>\n
\"Our combined salaries are only around Rp 4 million. We have
\nto make our monthly payments on the house, buy milk for our
\nchildren, and pay the maid's salary. We simply can't afford to
\nhire a nanny for our children,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Tens of thousands of families living in the outlying areas of
\nGreater Jakarta such as Cibubur, Bekasi, Tangerang and Depok are
\nin a similar situation as Ani and Irfan.<\/p>\n
According to the latest data issued by the National Statistics
\nAgency (BPS), most families living in Jakarta have an income of
\nless than Rp 2 million per month.<\/p>\n
A recent study by German sociologist Hans Dieter Evers
\nconcludes that productivity in big cities in third world
\ncountries, including Jakarta, would reduce by half if their
\nnon-formal workers, including maids, left their jobs.<\/p>\n
Despite their important role in modern life in Jakarta, many
\npeople still see their maids as slaves, often mistreating them
\nwithout any reason.<\/p>\n
Ida Ruwaida Noor, a sociologist at the University of Indonesia
\nsays several cases of violence toward maids have made headlines
\nin the media, including Sri Maryati, 18, who was beaten and
\nlocked up in a toilet in Bekasi in March 2004; Yuli, 19, who was
\nphysically abused for months in East Jakarta, and Sari, who was
\nnot fed for days in Bekasi. These incidents, she says, are
\nbelieved to be just the tip of the iceberg.<\/p>\n
Ida said more common exploitation seen in most families in
\nJakarta was requiring their maids to work long hours -- between
\n15 to 18 hours per day -- without adequate rest or holidays as
\nwell as subjecting them to verbal abuse.<\/p>\n
Data from the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas Ham)
\nshows that about 8,583 cases of domestic violence, mostly
\nrelating to maids, were reported from 2001 to 2004.<\/p>\n
Lusy, 40, a housewife living in an elite housing complex in
\nSouth Jakarta, says that she pays her maid enough. \"She should
\nwork hard for that. Sometimes, she just doesn't understand my
\ninstructions and does something wrong so I scold her to teach her
\na lesson.\"<\/p>\n
Ida says unlike in more advanced countries, where maids are
\ntreated with respect and get a much higher salary, maids in
\nIndonesia are often at the mercy of their employers.<\/p>\n
\"Each ethnic group in Indonesia used to have slaves or
\ndomestic helpers at the bottom of the social strata. This
\nproduces a mind-set that puts maids at the lowest level of the
\nsocial structure. They also have low bargaining power as
\nemployers think that they can get another maid easily,\" said Ida.<\/p>\n
A son of a maid, who lives with an employer in Central
\nJakarta, says that he never mentions the profession of his mother
\nto his friends at school to avoid embarrassment.<\/p>\n
\"I just say that my mother is a farmer in the countryside, and
\nI stay here with my relatives. I have a friend who was humiliated
\nafter he revealed that his mother was a maid,\" he said, asking to
\nremain anonymous.<\/p>\n
Maids abused and raped in the last two years<\/p>\n
No. Name Age Year Area Case<\/p>\n
1. Sri Maryati 18 2004 Bekasi death caused by<\/p>\n
months of abuse<\/p>\n
2. Yuli 19 2003 East Jakarta Serious injuries<\/p>\n
due to beating
\n3. Sari 18 2003 Bekasi Serious injuries<\/p>\n
due to beating<\/p>\n
4. Solikhah 23 2003 Central Jakarta rape and abuse<\/p>\n
5. Suprianti 20 2003 Central Jakarta rape and abuse<\/p>\n
6. Suparni 23 2003 Tangerang rape and abuse<\/p>\n
From various sources<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/domestic-helpers-essential-but-paid-poorly-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }